Frustrated about the availability of chicks

[FlockAround-andFindOut]

You would probably do better (and faster) with non chain farm stores. Hoovers or Murray McMurray for example. I believe both hatcheries vaccinate for Marek's, whereas the local farm stores don't

I'm not trying to pick up any. Just saying status here.

 

[FrostRanger]

You would probably do better (and faster) with non chain farm stores. Hoovers or Murray McMurray for example. I believe both hatcheries vaccinate for Marek's, whereas the local farm stores don't

Tractor supply gets their chicks from hoover. No hatchery vaccinates unless you specifically ask for it

 

[U_Stormcrow]

So is anyone else having issues with every chick being bought up within a small amount of time after arrival at stores?

In my area they are being bought up so fast?

Same thing happened during the pandemic. People who don't know what they are doing are panic buying in the mistaken belief that they will soon get a dozen eggs, twice a week, from their "money saving investment".

 

[DonyaQuick]

Well bummer...don't know if this has already been posted and I missed it but I just read a FB post from Cackle that their barns got hit by a tornado on Friday. I had a small pullet order with them for for later in the year. I was going to be putting some eggs in the incubator very soon and wasn't worried because I had that pullet order as a backup, but maybe I should be putting some extras in the incubator...

 

[SourRoses]

Well bummer...don't know if this has already been posted and I missed it but I just read a FB post from Cackle that their barns got hit by a tornado on Friday. I had a small pullet order with them for for later in the year. I was going to be putting some eggs in the incubator very soon and wasn't worried because I had that pullet order as a backup, but maybe I should be putting some extras in the incubator...

I just went to check and one of their posts said that some of their 85 barn locations were damaged, but that the hatchery is fine. It doesn't seem like they anticipate any issues for customers?

 

[DonyaQuick]

I just went to check and one of their posts said that some of their 85 barn locations were damaged, but that the hatchery is fine. It doesn't seem like they anticipate any issues for customers?

Maybe I don’t understand how they are structured. I had read some time ago that the eggs and hatching are in a different place away from adult birds (so no disease risk etc), so then I then assumed the birds laying would be in some of the barns. Then that might not be an immediate impact, but late July babies like I ordered won’t have been laid as eggs for a while yet. But if the structure of what birds used for what are where is different, then my worry is perhaps unfounded.

 

[NatJ]

Maybe I don’t understand how they are structured. I had read some time ago that the eggs and hatching are in a different place away from adult birds (so no disease risk etc), so then I then assumed the birds laying would be in some of the barns. Then that might not be an immediate impact, but late July babies like I ordered won’t have been laid as eggs for a while yet. But if the structure of what birds used for what are where is different, then my worry is perhaps unfounded.

Yes, the hatchery would be where the incubators are and the chicks actually hatch, and the barns would be where the breeding flocks live.

I notice you said the barns were "hit by" a tornado and @SourRoses said some of the barns were "damaged."

But it looks like none of us know how much damage there was. If the chickens inside the barns were unharmed, and if the barns are still able to house the chickens, Cackle might be able to hatch as many chicks as ever, even if they need to do some repairs to the barns at the same time.

 

[Gazergirlstar]

Seeing the same thing here in S.C and its just awful, people buying as soon as they come in then posting in local groups with out knowing the breed and selling as straight runs. In the long run there will be tons for sale in a few months but still its hard on people who actually love chickens and want to put in the work

 

[Chicken_tiger_catt]

I'm in the Newark/ Heath area of Central Ohio, and the same thing's happening here! I have 6 chicks that are about 1.5 weeks old, but they're ones that I hatched myself. been wanting some Wyandottes and Bantams, but by the time school's out, everything's gone. I have 19 hens and a rooster, so I could start hatching more if I need to, but I can't hatch what breeds I don't have..................

 

[SourRoses]

late July babies like I ordered won’t have been laid as eggs for a while yet. But if the structure of what birds used for what are where is different, then my worry is perhaps unfounded.

Sorry, it would have been helpful to show what they actually said. I have a habit when reading things on social media to simply close the page without saving a link... in this case I instantly regretted it after I hit the X but I was mentally tired from the hunt for info, lol.

I notice you said the barns were "hit by" a tornado and SourRoses said some of the barns were "damaged."

But it looks like none of us know how much damage there was. If the chickens inside the barns were unharmed, and if the barns are still able to house the chickens, Cackle might be able to hatch as many chicks as ever, even if they need to do some repairs to the barns at the same time.

Good point. I saw a follow-up post where they were praising the Amish, saying "Look how fast they build back" and the picture was of a long length of fresh roof trussing. Looked like a new roof for a barn.

The wording they used when announcing the damage caught my eye. It was "damaged some of our 85 barn locations". I wondered if I interpreted that wrong, but it sounded like locations meant different sites rather than 85 barns on the same property? I also focused on the "damaged" and "some of". So it's hard to say what flocks are housed where... and maybe some ambiguity about infrastructure on Cackle's part is purposeful, for security reasons?

I don't know if it's nearly the same with poultry, but many plant seed vendors are working in partnerships with independent farms. A farm may specialize in one variety of cantaloupe (which helps prevent cross-pollination) and they send the seed in to the vendor who packages and sells it. That same farm may grow some other kinds of produce, but none of the farms grow everything. I suppose that also acts as insurance against climate / pest events, and so forth.

I would expect that any Cackle customers impacted by this event would be notified fairly soon. The hatchery must know what they need their breeding population to be like to fulfill current orders on the books. It would be disappointing to hear otherwise...